by Alix Hadden
"No, that's kind of you, but I'd best be getting on home. The dog will be missing me."
Kir had meant the invitation honestly, but even if things had thawed between them a bit over the course of this evening, he wasn't entirely sorry that she was leaving. As Jean took her leave, he couldn't help but feel relieved once the door had shut behind her and her candles and her yew and her weird death-magic.
"Well, that was a fucking washout, then," Ali said, swinging her feet up onto the sofa, wiggling them onto his lap, and lying down. "And what the hell is Matt on about now? Did you say the magic words, takeout? Because I could absolutely go for that. Also some kind of trashy movie, and no discussing magery of any kind. Or performing it, come to that, just in case you summon up the goddamn mud-thing again."
"Didn't we ought to, like, think of another thing to try?" Kir asked, but his heart wasn't really in it.
"Tomorrow," Ali said, firmly. "Tonight, I have had enough. Trashy movie. Wine. Takeout." She lifted her feet off Kir's lap. "Get to it, yes? Some of us have been on our feet all day. I'll log into your Netflix and find something suitable."
Kir grumbled, and went to find a bottle of wine.
They were both too hungover to think about it any more the next morning, though.
"Oh god," Ali said. "Shower. Bacon rolls, maybe?"
She looked hopefully at Kir, who gave her the finger from where he was lying on the sofa. He'd gotten out of bed; that was as much as was reasonable to expect right now. Going anywhere near the kitchen was not.
He lay there with his eyes shut listening to the sound of Ali's shower, and thinking about Zach. He wanted to text Zach. He wanted to meet up with Zach again, and talk to him, and definitely shag him, that was definitely on the agenda. But that would be three times, and it wasn't going to last, obviously it wasn't going to last. So it made sense to stop it now, rather than waiting until they'd actually messed it up properly, which was guaranteed to happen sooner or later. It would clearly be a lot easier and less stressful if he got it over with straight away.
Also, there was this whole thing where Kir was a mage, and magery was currently dangerous, and so Zach would be better off not being around him. It wasn't like he and Ali were getting anywhere working out what was going on, so it wasn't like a fix for the problem was on the horizon. And there was no way that just "not doing magery" was going to work for any length of time at all. Sooner or later Kir would forget, and do something, and presumably then there would be mud-thing everywhere again.
He probably ought to be more worried about that, now he came to think about it. And possibly a bit less depressive about the chances of him and Ali working out what was going on. Surely they would do eventually. Eventually. But right now, it wasn't on the immediate horizon.
And even if it wasn't for that, it didn't make sense for him to keep going out with Zach. If going out was what they were even doing, at this point. It was much more sensible to just stop.
Given which, it was odd that it felt like such a shitty idea; odd that the image of him telling Zach that thanks, it was nice, but best be done now, felt quite so rubbish.
The hangover was making him depressed, obviously. That would be what was happening.
The shower had stopped, and he heard footsteps coming through to the living room. He opened his eyes to see Ali, fully dressed, her hair hanging in damp tendrils around her face, looking down at him.
"Well, if you're not going to come up with a bacon sandwich, I'm going to go out and find one for myself," she said. "And then I'm not due at the cafe til this afternoon, so I'm going to go out with the camera."
"I thought you had today off?" Kir asked, squinting up at her.
"Asked for an extra shift," Ali said briefly, her jaw tightening.
She disappeared from his field of view, and he heard the kitchen tap running. Kir wanted to say something about how if she was short on cash, he was always happy to help out, but he knew Ali hated talking about money.
She reappeared, holding a glass of water. "Here. You should drink this."
Kir propped himself up halfway and took the water, grimacing. Ali's phone beeped as he was drinking it, and her face tensed as she read the message.
"Everything okay?" Kir asked, a little tentatively.
"Yeah," Ali said. "It's fine, just...It's fine." She made a dismissive gesture and put her phone back in her pocket, and Kir decided to let it go.
"Ugh," he said, letting himself lie back down on the floor, and squinting up at her. "I do not understand how you can possibly do photographing with a hangover."
"Come on, you know this. I've told you before. I find the feeling of generalised misery and incipient doom creatively inspiring. At least, I do once I've stopped feeling like I'm going to vom everywhere, hence the bacon sandwich quest. I'd say you were welcome to come with me, but..."
"But you don't like company when you're off photographising," Kir said. "I know. No worries."
"We should probably do a bit more work on this problem tonight, though. Once you're recovered."
"After you're done at the cafe?"
"Yeah. I'm locking up again. Meet me there then?"
Kir nodded, and let his eyes close again.
"And get up, you lazy bastard. Just because you overdid it last night doesn't mean you get to have a day off."
"Surely that's exactly what being self-employed does mean," Kir argued, and laughed at Ali's snort.
Except, now he came to think of it, he still had that damn deadline to worry about. The door clicked shut behind Ali, and he sighed and levered himself off the floor, wincing at the way his head throbbed. More water, food, painkillers. Then some work. But perhaps today was not a day for going to the climbing wall.
It wasn't, it turned out, one of his most productive work days, either. Partly due to the hangover, insufficient sleep, and the fact that the mud-thing problem kept nagging at him. Partly due to the fact that he kept thinking about Zach, and about not really wanting to stop seeing Zach, and about how that was nevertheless clearly the most sensible thing to do.
Also Zach didn't text. And Kir didn't text either.
Maybe Zach was going to dump him already anyway. He ought to be pleased about that idea, because it would clearly solve his immediate problem; but somehow he couldn't manage to feel positive about it.
All in all, it was a bit of a shitty day, even once the headache retreated. He was relieved when it got late enough that he could reasonably make himself some dinner, and head along to meet Ali. Hopefully the two of them could come up with some kind of idea about what was going on, now that they knew it wasn't death magic, even if his own mind was entirely blank. Two heads being better than one, and all that.
He was early to the coffee shop in the end, and took the opportunity to sit down with a hot chocolate while he waited for Ali to finish up. He frowned over at Ali. She looked tired, more tired than usual, and okay, they'd had a late night, but Ali usually bounced back quicker than he did from these things. As he watched, she turned away from a customer. Her bright smile slid straight off her face, and she slumped slightly against the counter as she shoved a mug under the coffee machine.
She'd tell him if there was a problem. Prying always just made her cross. He looked down at his phone and dedicated himself to catching up on his unread articles.
"Waiting for Ali again?" Marcelo asked, a few minutes later, and Kir jumped. "Fine, but get your feet out of the way, I'm trying to sweep up."
"Once you've done the floor, you can head off, Marcelo," Ali called over. She still looked tired. "I'll finish up. Then you won't have to rush to get to the cinema."
"Aw, you're a star, Ali." Marcelo applied himself to the broom with vigour.
After he'd already left, with a couple of minutes still to go before official closing time, the door jangled, and Kir turned round to see -- Zach.
"Oh!" Zach looked surprised to see him, but then his face cleared and he beamed at Kir.
Kir couldn't preve
nt himself from smiling back. Maybe he was wrong. Maybe this should run a bit longer after all.
"Don't get sidetracked now," Ali said in a warning voice, but she was smiling at both of them.
"Oh! Yes, sorry, I know you're nearly shut, but we're working late today. Can I get four coffees? Large."
"Since I'm feeling generous, and I haven't flushed the machine out yet -- okay, sure."
Zach grinned at her, and Kir felt faintly jealous at that smile turned on someone else.
"Also because Patience would kill me for turning down a customer when we're still just about open," Ali added. "Terrible unreasonable slave-driver boss that she is."
She sorted out the coffees in double-quick time. Zach turned round and grinned again at Kir, balancing the tray. "I really do have to get these back to the office, but I probably have a couple of minutes?"
"I've got some stuff to do in the basement, Kir," Ali said. "I'll be at least another couple of minutes."
"I'll walk you back," Kir suggested. "I guess you're not that far?"
"Over the road," Zach agreed. "That would be nice."
"Go on," Ali waved a hand at Kir. "I'll clean the machine and lock up and see you outside in a couple of minutes, okay?"
Kir wasn't quite sure what to do with himself now. He'd convinced himself that he and Zach would be better off splitting up, and he could remember being convinced, but somehow none of his arguments sounded quite as strong now that Zach was actually right here.
There was a hip-height brick wall next to the coffee shop, and Zach put the tray down on it, and grabbed gently at the front of Kir's jacket. Kir's pulse sped up.
"Look, I really do have to get back to the office pretty quickly, but..."
Zach's face was right next to Kir's, and they were kissing before Kir knew quite what was happening. And yes, fine, it made sense to stop what was going on before it all went wrong anyway, it made sense to keep it under control. But it also made sense to lean into Zach right now, and to slide his hands round Zach's hips and into the back pockets of his jeans, and for him and Zach to be pressed up against each other. Zach's mouth slid away from Kir's mouth, and Zach bit gently at the line of his jaw. Kir found himself making an embarrassing noise which if anything seemed only to encourage Zach to bite him again. Kir's fingers, tucked into the back pockets of Zach's jeans, were digging into Zach's arse, and Zach was pushing up against him, even as he moved his mouth lower, onto Kir's neck, and bit him again, harder this time, a short sweet shock of pain. Then Zach's hand was over the bulge in Kir's jeans where his cock was already mostly hard, and Kir moaned again.
"God," Zach whispered, "if there was anywhere more private here..."
"I thought you had to get back to work," Kir muttered.
"I dunno, how quickly do you think I could get you to come?" Zach asked, and Kir could feel his smile against Kir's neck.
"God, there's a question," Kir said, pushing his hips up against the pressure of Zach's hand. "Quicker when you say things like that, that's for sure."
He was almost tempted to suggest going out behind the shop. It wasn't that far, and if Zach really meant it...but that was absurd, Zach had to get back to work, and it was bad enough snogging like teenagers out in front of the coffee shop. Surely groping in alleyways...but it was so tempting.
Then there was a scream, high and panicked, from inside the coffee shop, and they jerked apart, shocked and briefly entirely confused.
"Ali," Kir breathed, and took off for the door. He heard Zach scrambling after him, coffee presumably abandoned on the damn wall and why was he even thinking about coffee?
He yanked at the door, but it was shut, locked, Ali must have locked it already. The lights were mostly off inside, and he couldn't see past the curtain that was across the door, couldn't make out anything through the windows for the shadows inside, chairs tipped up on the tables making a forest of sharp angles and cross-cutting shadows. He couldn't see Ali, and rattled at the door again.
"Kir," Zach was saying urgently behind him, but Kir couldn't spare the energy to turn around and look.
Ali screamed again, and Kir yanked power from all around him, heedless of where he was getting it, and burst straight through the door.
He blinked for a moment, adjusting to the half-lit room.
"Ali? Ali! Where are you?"
"God, Kir..." She sounded high-pitched, panicky, and he rounded one of the tables to find her on the floor clutching her ankle, and -- christ, the mud-thing in front of her was huge, spreading across the floor towards her. Ali's face was drained of colour, he could see that even in this low light, and her expression was terrified. Kir heard a gasp behind him -- Zach, presumably, coming in behind him and seeing this thing.
"I keep pushing, but it won't move," she said, "and I can't keep -- my ankle hurts, Kir, I can't..."
"It's okay," Kir said, willing his voice to keep steady. "I've got it. You just keep out of the way."
"You need water again?" That was Zach, and his voice was steady now.
Ali was hurt already. Zach wasn't even a fucking mage. He needed to fix this, needed to get both of them out of here. This shouldn't have happened at all. It was surely his damn fault, for messing around outside and leaving Ali in here alone. Had he used magery? Was this entirely his fault?
"No," Kir said. "You and Ali get out of here. I'll deal with it."
"Kir, don't be bloody stupid," Ali said sharply, pulling herself up with the leg of the table. "This is bigger. You can't deal with it by yourself."
Kir dragged power in again from all around, and slashed out at the thing. It recoiled, hard. "Watch me."
Could he get at the tap from here? Could he pull the water out, wash this thing across the floor -- but it was huge, it was fucking enormous, and it was oozing back towards Ali again. Shit.
"The coffee machine's still on," Ali was saying, and he couldn't quite concentrate on her. He had to focus on this thing that was creeping towards Ali, and Zach, he had to get rid of it.
"On it," Zach said.
"Get out, both of you," Kir said again.
This time, instead of swiping at the mud-thing, he reached into it with his mental arm and yanked, hard, at the middle of it. Mud splashed out from its centre, spraying towards him, and he barely jumped back in time before it touched him. But it had worked; there was a hole now in the middle of the thing, and it was slumping inwards instead of reaching out.
Then it seemed to recover itself, just as he was cautiously leaning backwards to try to help Ali, and it lashed out again, harder this time. And why was Ali even still there, why hadn't she gone? He could see someone moving behind the counter, but they were standing up, fiddling with the coffee machine; it had to be Zach, but he'd told Zach to go, as well. Why weren't either of them getting out?
The mud-thing's tentacle, or whatever you cared to call it, sliced straight past him, and hit Ali on the arm.
"Fuck, fuck," she was back down on the floor, grabbing her arm and swearing, and Kir was pulling power in again and slicing, again and again, at the mud-thing.
It was working, but it wasn't working, it wasn't actually getting rid of the damn thing, just keeping it from coming back at him. Ali was taking sobbing breaths on the floor behind him, and he couldn't spare the time to look back and find out what was actually happening to her. What did this thing do, if it actually got you? Neither of them had exactly wanted to find out. Apparently Ali hadn't gotten the option, because he hadn't managed to stop it from getting her when she was already injured.
He swiped again, as viciously and thoroughly as he could, grabbed again for the heart of the thing, but it was still coming forwards, coming at them, harder and faster now. Had injuring Ali strengthened it, somehow? If it could access the power of a mage...it was clearly a magical creature, that would make some level of sense. But it was a terrifying idea.
"Kir! Watch out!"
Zach was leaning over the counter, and he had something in his hand that Kir couldn't quite w
ork out what it was, and he was aiming it at the back of the mud beast.
Then water was spraying out of it, and steam -- hot water, from the coffee machine, yes, of course -- and wherever the water hit, the mud-thing was disintegrating. But the front part of it, as if reacting to Zach's attack on its rear, was moving forwards, towards Kir and Ali. Kir pushed back at it with everything he had, pushed it back onto the steaming, boiling stream of water, and took a step backwards himself to grab Ali under the arms.
"Up onto the table," he said, knocking chairs to the floor with his elbow, and mostly lifting her onto the space he'd cleared. "Keep off the floor."
Ali was clutching her arm, now, instead of her ankle, and looking even more wobbly than she had when he'd first gotten back into the coffee shop, but he didn't have the time to look at what was happening.
"Kir!" It was Zach again, sounding more urgent. "Get off the floor yourself!"
Kir looked down to find a mud-thing tentacle reaching out towards him again, nearly at his ankle, and swore, and swiped at it, then shoved some more chairs onto the floor and jumped up onto another table.
The puddle of water Zach was aiming onto the floor was getting bigger, and more of the thing had slumped into it, but the rest was holding together better than the previous ones had. Were they learning somehow? Terrifying thought which he didn't have time to engage with right now; another piece of the thing was swiping at him and he needed to swipe back at it.
But pushing worked, pushing the thing back into the boiling water which Zach, his face set, was still holding on it. They had the measure of it now, and it took what seemed like far too long but could only in reality have been another couple of minutes before all that was left was a lake of filthy water across the floor of the coffee shop, and the three of them staring at each other over Ali's sobbing breaths.
CHAPTER EIGHT
"Ali!"
Kir vaulted across from his table to hers, still not wanting to put his feet into the mess on the floor, even if he was convinced that it was fine now. He was trying to ignore the trembling that was setting in now that it was all over; he was all too aware that he'd been pulling from all over, from everything, and some of that was just from himself. Which was dangerous, and if Ali twigged that he'd been doing it she would freak out, but from the look of Ali she didn't have any thought processes to spare for idiotic things that Kir was doing right now.
